Human Missions to Mars Enabling Technologies for Exploring the Red Planet

<p>In this book, Donald Rapp looks at human missions to Mars from a technological perspective. He divides the mission into a number of stages: Earth’s surface to low-Earth orbit (LEO); departing from LEO toward Mars; Mars orbit insertion and entry, descent and landing; ascent from Mars; trans-Earth injection from Mars orbit and Earth return.</p><p>A mission to send humans to explore the surface of Mars has been the ultimate goal of planetary exploration since the 1950s, when von Braun conjectured a flotilla of 10 interplanetary vessels carrying a crew of at least 70 humans. Since then, more than 1,000 studies were carried out.</p> <p>This third edition provides extensive updating and additions to the last edition, including new sections, and many new figures and tables, and references.<br></p><br><p></p>